Guilford Metro 911 handled 668,000 calls, answered 99.9% in 10 seconds

Guilford Metro 911 handled more than 668,000 calls last year and still answered 99.9 percent of them within 10 seconds or less, a pace county officials are using to show the emergency communications center kept moving even as demand stayed high across Greensboro and the rest of Guilford County.

Deputy Director of Operations Christine Moore said the annual report is meant to show the range of work call-takers handle in a single shift, from coaching a caller through CPR for a critically ill patient to taking something as routine as a barking dog complaint. The biggest measure of that work was lifesaving: Moore said telecommunications staff were involved in 53 lifesaving incidents, often by giving CPR instructions before police, fire or EMS arrived.

The center’s reach stretches well beyond downtown Greensboro. Moore said about 60 percent of the center’s volume came from Greensboro and about 40 percent from the rest of Guilford County, underscoring how much the county communications hub matters to neighborhoods, subdivisions and rural stretches outside the city. Guilford County Emergency Medical Services says Guilford Metro 911 is the first point of contact for most people seeking emergency medical help, and it answers 911 calls from Greensboro and the part of Guilford County outside High Point’s corporate limits.

The county also says every employee who answers emergency medical calls is certified by the National Academy of Emergency Dispatch as an Emergency Medical Dispatcher. Guilford Metro 911 uses 911-Enhanced technology and is Phase II compliant for wireless emergency call location determination, part of the system that helps dispatchers identify where a caller is located when seconds matter. Guilford County Emergency Management says emergency management personnel can also be requested through Guilford Metro 9-1-1 Communications, adding another layer to the center’s role in local response.

The 668,000-call total came after years of heavy volume. In March 2024, Guilford Metro 911 reported more than 347,000 calls in 2023, an average of 953 a day, while answering 99.8 percent of calls within 10 seconds and crediting staff with 54 lives saved. In November 2023, the center had logged 293,556 911 calls through the end of October and was short 16 positions, a reminder that strong answer times have come while the center has operated under staffing pressure. By December 2024, the center had also rolled out a post-call feedback system, and nearly 80 percent of callers were responding, with the feedback overwhelmingly positive.

Taken together, the numbers show a county communications center that has grown into a central public-safety dispatch point for Greensboro and Guilford County, while still keeping the first call fast, the response local and the system reliable when the stakes are highest.